An Empirical Investigation of School Performance among Primary School Heads in District Gujrat

Abstract

This research examined the level of performance of primary school heads in the District of Gujrat and the researcher attempted to identify the difference in performance of the same based on gender. The quantitative descriptive design of research was adopted and 100 primary school heads (50 males and 50 females) were selected using stratified random sampling. The researcher-designed Primary School Performance Observation Schedule (PSPOS) was used to measure school performance by using the indicators: student admission, retention and dropout, co-curricular activities, school cleanliness and classroom achievement. The findings indicated that the overall performance of the schools was moderate with student admission and classroom achievement being the strongest areas whereas the co-curricular activities were performing very low. The analysis based on gender revealed that there were no significant differences in most of the indicators with the exception that, student retention was significantly elevated among the male heads as compared to their female counterparts. The results indicate that although the heads of the primary schools can cope with both academic and administrative duties, special interventions should improve student retention and involvement on co-curricular activities. Professional development, co-curricular programs, leadership practices through collaboration and periodic performance reviews are some of the recommendations that can enhance the whole-school performance.